The Nox assassin left sword embedded where it had stabbed it. At that moment, I felt as if I were a painting fixed to the wall. If I moved suddenly, the sword would sink even deeper, destroying my internal organs.
The assassin was furious—very, very furious. It didn't look like a normal rage. It was clear from his shining eyes, which placed his emotions above it duty as an assassin. It was evident that, it was aware of the limited injuries I had inflicted on and that it seemed to be intent on exacting revenge for that pain manifold. I quietly thought to myself, 'No... The assassin seriously intends to torture me!' I didn't know if I could endure the pain even if I didn't die immediately.
If it truly intended to torture me, I had to endure it. Someone had to come to help me. I no longer had the strength to wield my weapons. I didn't know if I could survive more surprise attacks.
The assassin pulled out it stiletto and stabbed into my shoulder wound. Then it spun dagger around himself to make me bleed more. I was about to faint from the pain but it seemed like it didn't want to let me pass out. It grabbed my chin, forcing me to look. Then other hand seized my throat and started squeezing. I started to lose my breath once again.
It seemed like I truly had no escape anymore. The assassin's only thing I could see clearly were it blackened eyes. Everything else around me started to become blurry.
I was desperately flailing against the wall, trying to escape from the assassin. As I did this, I began to stop caring about the sword that kept me in place. If I behaved this recklessly, I would die from internal bleeding but nothing I did would kill it more effectively than breaking my neck with hands or suffocating me. The way I would die would not be what he wanted.
I didn't want to be someone who couldn't decide how to die. Even if I was going to die, I wanted my death to be meaningful. I wanted to walk towards death or hold the key to escape from death in my hands.
Just a few seconds more, and then my entire life would start flashing before my eyes like a movie reel. While all of this is happening, I will take my last breath and will never know what became of my body. I wouldn't even know if I had a grave. I wouldn't know if anyone still remembers me.
My vision darkened further. I could no longer see anything clearly. My end had come and I was going to die. Since my soul had experienced death before, I didn't know what would happen this time. Maybe I would be reincarnated again, or I might not have anything at all. I only had to wait for death to claim me.
But that did not happen.
Besides that, I noticed that the assassin's grip on my neck was loosening. Then, seconds later, I heard a sound for the first time. That slimy, wet sound of a sword being drawn from a corpse. My vision was not clear but I could see the presence of a sword. The blackish sword was passing through the assassin's body and had killed. The person holding the sword, however, looked gentle but was like a thorny flower. Her wavy, short hair was flowing and she had a beautiful shade of blue. There was no sign of emotion on her face. But within her blue eyes, you could sense an emotion lingering.
The help I'd been waiting for finally arrived at my feet. The help I'd been expecting had killed the assassin. That person was none other than Zui. Zui was looking at the assassin she had just killed with her icy-cold eyes. I then pulled the sword out from my stomach. Blood was pouring out from my abdomen and I sank to my knees.
It seemed that Zui had immediately noticed this, because I felt her hands on my face. There was an anxious expression in her eyes and on her face.
"Nell! Don't you dare fall asleep! Do you hear me?!? Don't even think about sleeping!!"
Hearing this terrifying voice was actually comforting. For a long time, I hadn't heard any sound,and I thought that even these kinds of sounds could be soothing. Despite Zui ordering me to stay conscious, my wounds were severe. I could feel my heartbeat slowing down but instead, it was increasing even more. Zui started to remove the clothes on me to check my wounds.
"Shit... We have to cast a healing spell. Otherwise, you'll die. Do you hear me, you moron?!? Don't even think about dying."
Who would want to die? Because Zui's magic stat was abnormally high, I was hoping she could heal me.
Instead of casting a magic, she suddenly began wrapping my most severe wounds with first aid supplies that appeared in her hand. I started to wonder, 'Why isn't she casting a heal? Or perhaps, unlike everyone else, she just doesn't think to use magic?' But then this idea seemed illogical to me. The more likely reason was that the Sin of the Flower couldn't cast healing magic. Some of us are unable to learn certain types of magic. Even if we spend our entire lives practicing, we might not be able to perform even the simplest spells of that kind. This could very well be the case for Zui too.
After bandaging my wound on the stomach and controlling the bleeding as much as possible, she helped me stand up. I was leaning on her shoulder as I walked. I could smell some floral scents. It was probably Zui's hair or perfume. My eyes were now closed. It had become almost impossible to stay conscious. I didn't know where she was taking me but I was certain it was somewhere I could be healed. Since I had used magic, I knew someone would come to the dormitory, see all the bloodstains and the assassin's body.
"You will be alright. You will be fine. You're more stubborn than you look. Just like me…"
I couldn't hear the rest of her words because I completely lost consciousness. After that, I had no choice but to hear what would happen from others.
************
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the image of a dark-colored ceiling. This ceiling was definitely the same as the one in my dorm room. I suddenly tried to sit up but sharp pain shot through my wounded areas. I was only wearing pants. Most of my body was wrapped in bandages. I began to feel like a mummified corpse. I was holding my wound on my stomach because the pain there was truly terrible. Additionally, my throat was dry and I felt as if there was an emptiness in my stomach.
Feeling these things was actually a good sign because they indicated I was still alive.
"I'm really alive... Thanks to Zui."
The assassin was so obsessed with taking out all rage on me that he hadn't even noticed Zui's presence. Even if it was a professional assassin, it paid the price for embroiling emotions in this. Being alive was a good thing in one way. But I felt a sense of melancholy that I couldn't quite name. On the other hand, not knowing why the assassin targeted me and who the person holding the leash was was a big problem. No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't come up with a logical theory. Thinking about all this even gave me headaches.
Amidst all these thoughts, I heard the door open while I was floating. Since I didn't want to move my body, I could only turn my head. The person who entered was none other than Zui.
"You're awake."
Instead of rushing over to hug me, she took a heavy step and sat down next to me on a chair. She started looking at me with that emotionless face.
"So... Do I need to say something?"
"Aren't you going to ask me anything?"
Of course, I was curious about what had happened while I was unconscious but I realized that what Zui wanted to ask about were questions. I was sure she knew something about the Nox assassins. It seemed like we'd both get our answers.
"Hah... I guess I have to rest until Friday. I don't want my family to see me like this."
"Today is Sunday."
"I see... WHAT!?!?!?"
I had been unconscious for three days, and I was just now realizing it. In amazement, I tried to get up, but my pain and Zui's presence prevented me from doing so.
"Calm down. Don't rip out your stitches."
"Ah... Fuck... My body is hurting... My family... they must be wondering what's going on right now."
"Don't worry. I told them everything."
"What?"
"I said, I told them everything."
"Is this some kind of joke?"
"I told them that you weren't in the city and that you went on a short trip."
"And did they really believe that?"
"They had to believe it."
While Zui was saying that last sentence, I couldn't help but notice a difference in her eyes.
"What do you mean?"
Whenever I looked around even a little, I realized I wasn't in my own room. In other words, I had been unconscious in Zui's room for three days.
"Were you worried that my assassination shouldn't be known? Nobody knows what I've been through, right?"
Zui didn't say anything. Doing so was a little bit irritating. As I moved to a position on the bed where I could hear her better, I continued my questions.
"Or was this also 'out of necessity'? Why did you save my life?"
________________________
Author: In order to accumulate episodes and create the necessary stock, the episode may not arrive on some days.